Crunchyroll has been really been working hard to become the legal streaming site for manga. Their “all you can read” plan puts a lot of titles at readers fingertips for one monthly price, and they are adding new titles all the time. Recently, they added two new titles, The Lucifer and Biscuit Hammer and Kippo. Kippo is a new title to western readers. It is by Hiroshi Tanaka and runs in Shonengahosha’s Young King magazine. The story is about some boys whose family life is anything but happy, and the people they meet in their “spot”, who become more family than their own. When disaster strikes, it’s these people who come together to protect what is important to them. The first chapter is available for anyone to read, while the rest of the first and only volume published so far is behind the subscription wall. It’s violent and disturbing at times, but does appear to have potential for some real drama.

The Lucifier and Biscuit Hammer is not a new title to western readers. Jmanga started releasing it and got out 5 volumes before they closed up. Crunchyroll has been rescuing a lot of Jmanga’s titles, and hope they continue to do so, but not everyone is happy about this license. Print publisher Seven Seas Entertainment already announced this title for print. They will be releasing 2 volume omnibus editions starting in November. There was a bit of a brouhaha on Twitter after Crunchyroll made the announcement, as some say it as stepping on Seven Seas’s toes. There seems to be some resentment among fans, and possibly publishers (though they’d never say anything openly) over Crunchyroll licensing and releasing titles digitally, often well before the print licensers can get theirs out, and possibly undercutting sales. They did it to Vertical with Ajin, and are now doing it again with Seven Seas. Crunchyroll has the whole series around up for premium members to read a whole  month ahead of Seven Seas’s first omnibus. The possible good/bad thing about this is that there are different translators for each project, but that can be a whole different can of worms.